Waimora, futsal to football

Name: Andrew WAIMORADOB: 1st May 1994Age: 16Village: Kwaibala, MalaitaProvince: Malaita (resides in Honiara)Occupation: StudentSchool: Florence Young Christian SchoolHeight: 1.65mMass: 62 kgPosition: ForwardOrientation: Left Internationals: 10 (futsal)Years playing: 10Awards: Player of the Tournament – U-16 Category [Australian National Futsal Championship, 2010]Alex is one of the players to watch in Solomon Islands line up. He has represented Solomon Islands internationally in futsal and is looking to make a switch to football and make a career playing in overseas leagues.Alex is fast with good ball control and skills and can let rip a powerful shot while running in full speed. These qualities have earned him the right to represent the country and has been taking all the pressure calmly while keeping his mind focussed on the task at hand.When did you start playing football?I started playing Futsal when I was 6 years old and my main focus was on the indoor code but at times I have cross over to the 11-a-side code. This will be the first time for me to represent Solomon Islands in the outdoor code and I am excited because I will be able to see whether I can move across easily.What are your goals as a football player?I hope to one day be able to play in any professional league in Asia. I think this is possible for me to achieve because I am young and I have a lot of people whose experiences I can build upon. The only thing left for me to do is to work hard and make use of opportunities for exposure that I can get including this outing.Who is your favourite player in the national team?Henry Fa’arodo. I admire Fa’arodo because he has set a standard for young players in Solomon Islands. He always works hard and I would like to have the same positive attitude that he has towards training and during game time.Who is your favourite international footballer?Lionel Messi is my favourite international footballer. Messi is the fastest player around and he is able to score goals and in my training I aspire to play like Messi which is not so easy because he is so advanced.How has the transition from Futsal been for you?Moving from Futsal to football is a little bit complex and each player has to work hard to adjust. Attacking in outdoor football is great because you have more space to play and the pressure is not so tight as in Futsal. The downside is when you are defending and the space turns against you as you have to run very hard to fall back into your defensive position.However, I think it is easier moving from Futsal to football. Starting off in Futsal also has its advantages because you have to be really good at ball handling, possession and your passes have to be accurate and weighted precisely. Shooting is also an advantage because the Futsal ball is a little bit heavier than the 11-a-side ball and in Futsal you are constantly in the position to shoot so this encourages players to be more ambitious in getting goals.Do you hope to win this tournament and qualify for the World Cup?I think all the players in the team aim to win the championship and qualify for the world cup. That is why we are going and why we are putting all the effort we have put into our training. We really want to prove to ourselves that we can do it. Playing in the World Cup is everybody’s dream and we all want to get there.What is your confidence in your team?We are very confident. When we started training we struggled to find our roles and position in the team. After knowing each other personally there is the more important task of partnering up on the pitch but we have spent a lot of time together so we are comfortable with how we can complement each other on the field.When you don’t play football what do you play?Volleyball is another sport that interests me but that is solely as a pastime and I do not put much time into it. All my efforts in sport go towards football.

About SIFF

Football is officially recognised as the national sport in the Solomon Islands. With numerous competitions running year-round, the Solomon Islands Football Federation (SIFF) has a busy time ensuring the game continues to grow and develop. SIFF was founded in 1978 and became a full FIFA member in 1988 largely thanks to the late Alan Boso who saw the potential of Solomon Islands football. Since then the association has grown from strength to strength.